Kim Vandenbroucke, Game Inventor
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Photo by Brian Kelly
When it comes to goofing off, Kim Vandenbroucke is a pro. As a board game and toy inventor, she has developed products such as Cranium Party Playoff for Hasbro, Barbie Mini Kingdom for Mattel, and Scattergories Categories for Winning Moves. Trained in industrial design, the 32-year-old Chicagoan mixes the fundamentals of product design with a passion for play. "It's about going beyond that first solution," she says. "You have to keep up with what's out there, what's been successful, and why it's been successful." That's one of the reasons Vandenbroucke launched the Game Aisle, a website offering reviews of what she considers to be the best new game releases. She hopes the resource will inspire folks to rediscover board games. "It's very social," she says. "Video games are great, but you all just end up staring at the TV." Here are some of the tools she uses to reclaim our attention.
Meet Mr. Product"I love old advertising characters--the styles, the names, the nostalgia," says Vandenbroucke. This book, by Warren Dotz and Masud Husain, offers a thorough look at the past, making it "a great place to get ideas." ($10, amazon.com)
DiceWhen designing games, a set of normal white and black six-sided dice just won't cut it. "I have blank dice, dice with colors, and dice with skunks," she says. "I have them in giant cups behind my desk so I can just turn around and grab them." (Prices vary, chessex.com)
Wacom Cintiq 21UX"The more ideas I come up with and the quicker I can realize them, the more likely it is that I'll license something," says Vandenbroucke, who struggles with sketching by hand. With this display's undo function, "I can do some fabulous drawings in a third of the time." ($2,000, wacom.com)
Deluxe PitOne of Vandenbroucke's favorite games, Pit "looks so lame because it's a commodities tradi...
[Source: Fast Company]
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